How I Started a business, expanded it, almost lost it and got back on my toes

Top Trends You Need to Know About Now In Health & Fitness

In the very dynamic health and fitness industry, the “next best thing” seems to be popping up on a daily basis. It’s hard to separate fad from something that will last and often-times experts disagree on what is healthy or not. It can be really confusing. The bottom line is, living a health-focused life isn’t going away anytime soon, so the more you can create a health-focused business, the better you can serve your clients.

But despite all the confusion, there are a few trends in the industry that are worth taking note. Specifically, the use of natural remedies to treat the source of disease as opposed to managing symptoms once diagnosed, taking your workouts with you always including while on vacation, and tracking your fitness progress with wearable technology.

Using Turmeric to Fight Inflammation

Turmeric isn’t just a key component to Indian food anymore—it’s one of the best ways to naturally fight inflammation in the body. Diseases including arthritis, heart disease, asthma, diabetes, and cancer are all believed to be caused by chronic inflammation in the body—oh, and general muscle soreness is also the result of inflammation, although this is the less serious kind called, acute inflammation, which eventually goes away.

The active substance found in Turmeric called curcumin, is what makes the herb so powerful and anti-inflammatory. I’ve been taking Turmeric daily for about nine months and have experienced some great results including less muscle soreness after working out and quicker recovery in between workouts, almost no headaches or migraines, and the chronic pain in my lower back has almost gone away (sometimes when I push my workouts or sit for a long period of time with bad posture, it comes back briefly). I’ve been using Youtheory Turmeric capsules that I buy at Costco or here on Amazon. This particular brand also contains a black pepper which improves the absorbability of the turmeric into the body. Turmeric can be a little messy (it stains), so I find the capsules to be really easy to take, but there are also great recipes for turmeric teas and the this one for a turmeric latte, that will help you get more turmeric into your diet.

Folks, I am not a doctor, and simply informing you of something that has been working for me, personally. I checked with my doctor before taking turmeric, so you’ll always want to check with your own doctor before taking any supplements to make sure they won’t cause you adverse side-effects or interfere with your prescribed medications!

Staying Fit on Vacation

Ever go on vacation and come back dreading getting back into your daily healthy routine of clean eating and regular exercise? Me too! More and more people are choosing to plan vacations with their health in mind including staying on track with their eating and exercise while away from home. And more companies are starting to take note … The Westin hotels has a partnership with New Balance so you can borrow workout clothing and shoes and some rooms event have Peloton bikes to log a few rides during your stay.

Pure Barre has always been easy to take “on the go” because there is little-to no equipment involved. You could really complete a Pure Barre workout anywhere you can keep your balance! But now Pure Barre has made it even easier to keep up with classes with the new Pure Barre On-Demand (PBOD) streaming service. Simply log on and follow along for classes of 5, 10, 15, 30, 45 and 55+ minutes. The best part … PBOD is available for every client with a 12-month membership at no additional cost. How fun will it be to log on your phone and take a class at the beach? Or get invigorated with a quick workout in your hotel before a work presentation? PBOD won’t include your favorite teacher driving you to work just a little harder with that subtle correction, but it’s a great way to add more value to your membership and keep your workout routine away from the studio more consistent.

Taking Collagen for Joint Health and Better Skin

Collagen is another supplement that has incredible health benefits but also makes you look great too. Um, yes, please! After taking collagen for about a month, I’m convinced it must be the secret of every actress that looks amazingly youthful. Again, you’ll want to consult your doctor before taking any supplements—what works for one person might not be the best thing for you.

Collagen is what gives your skin strength and elasticity—it’s also the “glue” that supports your joints and tendons keeping your body together. Pretty important stuff. Collagen is naturally produced in your body, but unfortunately, as you age, that production slows down. In fact, your collagen production starts slowing in your 20’s and you can lose up to 1% a year going forward. After a while, that can really add up and you’ll start to see visible signs including wrinkles, less firm skin, and creaky joints.

It’s easy to take a collagen supplement in pill form or get a powder to mix into coffee or smoothies. I use this one from YouTheory that I buy at Costco or you can get on Amazon. You can also naturally ingest collagen through bone broth—which you can also get at many grocery stores and Costco. It’s right by the chicken stock.

After taking collagen for a month, I’ve experienced greater recovery between workouts. I’ve actually been pushing my workouts over the last month and feeling really good especially with my shoulder injury—no re-injury or pain through my shoulder. But let me tell you about my skin and hair. OMG. My hair is out of control—it’s grown at least 3 inches yet is somehow fuller. I’ve also received several compliments on my skin. Some scar tissue I have has really improved in appearance as well. Again, check with your doctor to see if adding a collagen supplement is right for you.

Wearable Technology to Track Workout Progress

It seems like just about everyone has an iWatch or FitBit to track their workouts. Wearing a heartrate monitor is a great way to measure the intensity of your workout, keep track of daily activity, and calories burned. But what do you do with all that information? And what zone should your heart rate be in when you work out? Pure Barre is actually launching a brand-new cardio-based class in August, and one of our clients, Dr. Joey Christiano with Wake Forest Baptist Health, as graciously offered to educate us about how to properly track your heart rate and use heart rate as a measure for your workouts. Dr. Christiano will be at Pure Barre Winston-Salem on Monday, August 14th in the evening and at Pure Barre Clemmons on Tuesday, August 15th in the evening (we’ll announce the exact times in a few weeks).

One of the great things about owning a fitness studio is that the industry is always changing and evolving. That keeps things exciting, but with change sometimes comes confusion about what trends will become widely accepted and what trends will simply fade away. The use of natural remedies to treat the source of disease as opposed to managing symptoms once diagnosed, taking your workouts with you always including while on vacation, and tracking your fitness progress with wearable technology all seem built-to-last. At a minimum, you might want to at least do some research on and see if they’d be of benefit to you.

I cannot stress enough that you shouldn’t just start taking supplements without consulting your doctor, so make sure you take that step before adding any new supplements to your diet.

On Thursday, I’ll be writing about health and wealth—is there a correlation? How can you ensure both? And then on Friday, I’ll share how I’m eating more veggies—by drinking them! I’ll share some great smoothie and cold-pressed juice recipes.